Bring in the police: Greater Sudbury Mayor

A motion will come before Greater Sudbury city council tonight on the question of whether police will be called in to investigate hundreds of thousands of missing tax dollars.

Investigation, firing could be result of missing transit money scandal

CBC News Posted: Oct 12, 2011 9:12 AM EDT | Last Updated: October 13, 2011

Greater Sudbury Mayor Marianne Matichuck said if a police investigation goes forward and a staff member is found to be at fault that person could get walking papers.

A motion came before Sudbury city council Oct. 12 on the question of whether police will be called in to investigate hundreds of thousands of missing tax dollars.

That motion came on the heels of an auditor's report that raises questions about the handling of a contract for a ticket kiosk at the city's bus terminal.

The report stated about $866,000 was not turned over to city coffers. It also stated several city employees knew about it and did nothing.

Greater Sudbury Mayor Marianne Matichuck said she'd vote in favour of bringing in the police.

Matichuk also said if a police investigation goes forward and a staff member is found to be at fault that person could get walking papers.

"If there is a problem, then there has to be accountability at the city," Matichuk said in an interview with CBC.

"And I've said from day one, I have no problem firing anybody."

The city's Chief Administrative Officer, Doug Nadorozny, has been at the center of this scandal. He was a department manager overseeing Sudbury Transitwhen the cash went missing.

Nadorozny issued a written apology yesterday about the way the contract was handled.

Matichuk said that isn't enough.

"It's an apology. Thank you very much. Does it stop the problem? No. We need to find out more information. We need to have an investigation."

Statement from the City of Greater Sudbury on the transit kiosk contract management

The City of Greater Sudbury recognizes that the issues surrounding the transit kiosk contract are very serious and have rightly shaken the confidence of the public. All staff who has had an involvement in the matter acknowledges, as we did in 2009 when the matter was first brought to Council, that better business decisions could have, and should have, been made. Payments were received over the entire term of the contract, but they were not sufficient to cover the amounts owing, and over time, the outstanding amount was allowed to grow.

The City recognizes that there are gaps in its processes, and we are taking steps to rectify them. Since 2009, the City has worked to strengthen its internal policies and procedures to ensure that all staff involved in complex contracts are better able to make sound business decisions and minimize risk. In addition, a plan is in place for the review of City policies, procedures and control processes related to contract administration. The City continues to actively address the issues identified as a result of this contract.

Significant efforts have been made and continue to be made to collect funds and recover the monies owing to the City. Staff will continue to provide regular updates to Council on these legal matters.

"The transit kiosk contract administration was a truly regrettable series of events - with regrettable results for our community. We have worked since 2009 to improve the way we do business to prevent such events from reoccurring." said Doug Nadorozny, Chief Administrative Officer. "We deeply apologize for the errors that have been made in the past, and we will keep working on improvements for the future."

CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices|About CBC News

Corrections and clarifications|Submit a news tip|

External Links

Link to Greater Sudburys auditor report

Bring in the police: Greater Sudbury Mayor

Investigation, firing could be result of missing transit money scandal

Statement from the City of Greater Sudbury on the transit kiosk contract management

Related Stories

External Links